I was thinking about the city’s requirement of keeping our sidewalks cleared when I realized that a large part of the problem is the city plows filling up the sidewalks after we have cleared them.

I have cleared my sidewalk and driveway many times and every time I check it after the city plow has gone through the street, the driveway and part of the sidewalk are filled with snow again. If the city is going to try to enforce the rule of keeping sidewalks and drives clear, then we as residents will have to enforce the no-refill-my-drive-and-sidewalk-after-I-have-cleared-it rule.

This may require the city to make provisions to clear the streets in a different way since, if I can be charged for clearing the sidewalk if it is not shoveled out, then it only is logical we will be able to charge the city if the plows refill our sidewalks and we have to clear them again.

Many of us have to pay already to get our walks shoveled, so having to pay to get them cleared again after the plows have refilled them apparently leads us to sending the extra shoveling charge to the city, since they were the ones that filled up the sidewalk with snow, not Mother Nature.

Consider this as just a heads up to the issue. Many of us work different hours and cannot be out clearing our walks and drives until later in the day. And since this seems to be a hardship causing people to walk in the street, maybe the city could consider a solution such as sidewalk plows, which as I understand would require the city to enforce the concrete sidewalk rule, no asphalt walks.

Hey, what an idea: a way to get more people working by fixing all of the broken and illegal sidewalks in the city and providing jobs in the winter as sidewalk plow drivers.

Robert Quance
Syracuse

DPW response to leaf pickup issue was lacking

To the Editor:

Recently, I called the DPW to determine when it planned to pick up 20 bags of leaves which had been sitting on my curb for almost four weeks along with others in my neighborhood.

More recently, I called the DPW and spoke with a gentleman whose name I will withhold so as not to expose and embarrass him with his anemic responses that were intended to placate me. When I mentioned that the 20 bags of leaves had not been picked up, his responses were:

1) The DPW had a leaf pick up on Nov. 1;

2) It will now have to wait for the weather to break since the recent snowstorm has tied up its resources, and

3) I, personally, can leave them off at the city dump.

My response to his statements are:

1) Does the DPW really believe that the one pickup of leaves on Nov. 1 was sufficient, since trees were still dropping most of their leaves during the whole month of November?

2) While I fully understand that Sunday’s and Monday’s snowstorm should have priority, I would like to know what exactly was the DPW doing in the intervening days between Nov. 2 and Dec. 4 that prevented it from doing another leaf pickup? and

3) Does the DPW really expect me to lug 20 bags of leaves to the city dump? Even if I owned a truck, van or SUV, it is not my responsibility to perform work for the DPW and for which I pay taxes for them to do. I don’t ask them to perform my job at work and therefore, they shouldn’t be asking me to do their job.